Survival and Early Growth of Acacia mangium, Ceiba pentandra and Casuarina equisetifolia on Sandy Tin Tailings

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1 PertanikaJ. Trop. Agric. Sci. 21(1): 59-65(1998) ISSN: Universiti Putra Malaysia Press Survival and Early Growth of Acacia mangium, Ceiba pentandra and Casuarina equisetifolia on Sandy Tin Tailings NIK MUHAMAD MAJID, BIMAL K. PAUDYAL and ZARINA BT SHEBLI Faculty of Forestry Universiti Putra Malaysia UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malays/la Keywords: tree growth, timber, fertilizer, tin tailings, nutrients ABSTRAK Satu kajian di ladang bekas lombong telah dijalankan untuk meuilai tumbesaran tiga spesis pokok (Acacia mangium, Ceiba pentandra dan Casuarina equisetifolia) dengan menabur dan tidak menabur baja dan penanaman tiga spesis penutup bumi (Centrosema pubescens, Calopogonium muconoides dan Puereria phaseoloides). Kajian ini telah dijalankan di Kampung Pasir, Sernenyih, Ulu Langat, Selangor. Baja (NPK) sebanyak 300 g telah ditaburkan pada anak pokok tiga bulan sekali dalam masa setahun. Ketinggian dan perepang pokok telah dikira selepas 23 bulan dan hari pokok ditanarn. Sam pa I tan ah juga telah diambil untuk analisa makmal. Keputusan menunjukkan bahawa tiga spesis pokok boleh tumbuh dengan baih walaupiui tanpa baja dan tumbesaran terdapat perbezaan yang ketara diantara pokok-pokok itu. Acacia mangium menunjukkan kadar pertumbuhan yang tertinggi diikuti oleh Ceiba pentandra dan Casuarina equisetifolia. Tanaman penutup bumi telah meningkatkan niurien-niurien dalam tanah. Kesan daripada kajian ini adalah spesis pokok Acacia mangium boleh digunakan untuk memulihkan tanah bekas lombong mauakala Ceiba pentandra dan Casuarina equisetifolia juga boleh digunakan tetapi tumbesaran tidak setanding dengan Acacia mangium. ABSTRACT A field study was carried out on tin tailings to evaluate the growth performance of three timber species (Acacia mangium, Ceiba pentandra and Casuarina equisetifolia) with and without fertilization and with three species of cover crops (Centrosema pubescens, Calopogonium muconoides and Puereria phaseoloides). The experiment was carried out at Kampung Pasir, Sernenyih, Ulu Langat, Selangor. NPK compound fertilizer was applied at the rate of 300 g per seedling every three months during the first year of the study. Height and diameter were measured 23 months after planting. Soil samples were also collected for laboratory analysis. The results showed that the three timber species can grow well even without fertilizer and the growth rates of the three species differ significantly. The fastest growth rate was recorded by Acacia mangium followed by Ceiba pentandra and Casuarina equisetifolia. The planting of cover crops slightly increased the nutrient status of the soil. Thus this experiment shows that timber species, particularly Acacia mangium, could be successf'lly used to rehabilitate abandoned ex-mining land, while Ceiba pentandra and Casuarina equisetifolia could also be used, but have slower growth rates than Acacia mangium. INTRODUCTION Active tin mining in Malaysia began in the late nineteenth century and has been a major contributor to the nation's economy (Lim et al. 1981). Most tin production is obtained from dredging, gravel pumps and open mines (Anon 1991). The mining operations have resulted in environmental destruction such as siltation of river beds and drainage systems and the destruction of agricultural land. Tin tailing areas in Peninsular Malaysia are estimated to be cover about 113,500 ha (Chan 1990). The tin mining activities have left three types of tailings: sand tailings, slime tailings and sandy slime tailings. Slime tailings with a proper drainage system have been successfully used for producing fruits and vegetables. However, there are problems with sand tailings. Many studies

2 SURVIVAL AND EARLY GROWTH OF A. MANGIUM, C PENTANDliA 8c C EQUISETIFOIJA ON SANDY TIN TAILINGS have been conducted to rehabilitate the ex-tin mining land and to better utilize these tin tailings for agriculture, including the use of natural rubber skim latex, palm oil mill effluent, sewage sludge, bitumen and emulsion to improve the physical and chemical of the tin tailings (Lim et al 1981). Afforestation and agroforestry practices have been recognized as suitable for rehabilitation of ex-tin mining areas (Mitchell 1957; Aug 1986, 1994; Nik Muhamad et al 1994). The main objective of this study was to evaluate the growth performance of three timber species with two levels of fertilization and three species of cover crops on the ex-tin mining land. Site Description MATERIALS AND METHODS The study was conducted at Kampung Pasir Semenyih, Selangor, about 20 km from Universiti Putra Malaysia campus, on soil belonging to the order Ultisol (Nik Muhamad et al 1994) which is sandy in texture. The study area is relatively flat and has an average rainfall of about mm per year. The monthly rainfall figues for April February 1996 are presented in Table 1. Average annual temperature ranges from C. The water table is 2 m from the soil surface, determined by the digging of a 2-m deep soil pit. The soil was moist above this level due to capillary rise of water, but the water was available only at a depth of 2 m. The physical and chemical of the soil before planting are given in Table 2. Month TABLE 1 Monthly rainfall (mm) at Semenyih during the study period Rainfall (mm) 1996 January February March 165 April May June July August September October November December TABLE 2 Soil (before planting) A. Physical Coarse sand (%) Fine sand (%) Moisture content (%) (0-40 cm depth) B. Chemical ph (H.,0) N (%)' P (ppm) K (meq/100 g soil) Ca (meq/100 g soil) Mg (meq/100 g soil) CEC (meq/100 g soil) Experimental Layout Seedlings of A. mangium, C. equisetifolia and C. pentandra were planted in early April 1994 at a spacing of 3 x 3 m. The experimental area was divided into 4 blocks (replicates) of 45 x 45 m, each block consisting of nine subplots (Table 3), each with 25 seedlings. Three cover crops (Centrosema pubescens, Calopogonium muconoidesand Puereria phaseoloides) were planted in rows between the tree species. The cover crops were planted only once, at the beginning of the experiment, and gave 100% coverage for each of the tree species. A 9-m buffer zone was established between the blocks. Fertilizer was applied to two blocks at 3- monthly intervals during the first year of the TABLE 3 Plot layout Rl R2 T2A3 T1A1 T2A1 T3A1 T2A3 T1A3 T3A1 T2A2 T3A2 T1A2 T1A1 T2A1 T1A2 T3A3 T1A3 T3A3 T3A2 T2A2 R3 R4 T3A2 T2A2 T1A2 T1A1 T1A2 T1A3 T1A3 T3A3 T2A3 T2A1 T2A2 T2A3 T2A1 T1A1 T3A1 T3A1 T5A2 T3A3 Note: Tl- Acacia mangium Al- Centrosema pubescens T2- Ceiba pentandra A2- Calopogonium muconoides T3- Casuarina equisetifolia A3- Puereria phaseoloides PERTANIKA J. TROP. AGRIC. SCI. VOL. 21 NO. 1, 1998

3 NIK MUHAMAD MAJID. BIMAL K. PAUDYAL AND ZARINA BT SHEBLI study period at the rate of 300 g NPK blue (15:15:15) per seedling. The remaining two blocks were not fertilized. The fertilizer was applied 24 hours after rainfall 0.3 m away from the base of the seedlings in a 10-cm deep circular trench and lightly covered with soil. Data Collection Growth in terms of total height and diameter was monitored for 23 months during the study period (April 1994-February 1996). The initial average height and diameter of the seedlings were as follows: Height - A. mangium (68.3 cm), C pentandra (73.6 cm) and C. equisetifolia (44.7 cm); Diameter - A. mangium (8.2 mm), C. pentandra (10.3 mm) and C. equisetifolia (8.5 mm). Survival rate one year after planting was 93% for A. mangium, 87% for C. equisetifolia and 89% for C pentandra. Soil samples were collected randomly from each subplot prior to and 23 months after planting. Soil sampling was done at depths of 0-20 and cm, randomly from five sampling points within each of the subplots and composited to form a sample. A soil auger was used to collect the samples, which were kept in plastic bags before being oven dried. The results are presented as average values of two soil depths. Data Analysis The soil samples collected were air dried and sieved through a 2-mm sieve to ensure that soils with very coarse sand (1-2 mm particle size) could also be incorporated for analysis. The samples were analysed to determine the physical and chemical. The physical determined were soil texture (determined by the pipette method) and moisture content (determined by the gravemetric method). The soil chemical determined were total N, available P, exchangeable Ca, Mg, K, ph and cation exchange capacity (CEC). Total N was determined by the Kjeldahl digestion procedure (Bremner 1962). Available P was determined using a spectronic-20 spectrophotometer. Exchangeable Ca, Mg, Kwere determined by the leaching method (IN NH 4 OAc at ph 7.0) and analysed by using an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Soil ph was determined at 1:2.5 soil/water solution by a glass electrode phmeter. Total organic carbon was determined by the Walkley and Black method (1934). The data were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) to test the effects of the fertilizers and cover crops on the growth parameters of three tree species and soil. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Soil Physical Properties The results of the analysis of soil physical are shown in Table 4. These show that the plots planted with A. mangium had significantly higher moisture content (0.57%) than the C. pentandra (0.43%) and C. equisetifolia (0.41%) plots. This is probably due to the higher organic matter accumulated through litterfall under the A. mangium plot compared to the plots of the other two species. The moisture content of the P. phaseoloides (0.54%) and C. muconoides (0.49%) plots was significantly (P<0.05) higher than that of C. pubescens (0.39%) plot. There was a significant (P<0.05) difference in moisture content between the fertilized and unfertilized plots. Generally, soil moisture content was very low compared to other types of soil. For instance, the moisture content of a normal agricultural soil is about 25%. According to Letey (1985), low soil moisture content will affect plant growth because of the direct relationship between water potential and soil water content. The sand content was significantly (P<0.05) higher in the C. pentandra (86.79%) plot than in the plots of the other two tree species. The silt and clay contents were, however, significantly (P<0.05) higher in the A. mangium plot than in the other two plots. For plots on the cover crops, the sand content was higher in the C. muconoides plot whereas silt and clay contents were higher in the C. pubescens plot as than in the other two cover crop plots. Similarly, silt and clay contents were significantly (P<0.05) higher tin the unfertilized plots than the fertilized ones whereas there was no significant (P<0.05) difference for sand content between these two plots. However, in quantitative terms, the differences in soil physical apparently caused by planting tree species and cover crops are too small to have any real impact on site quality. The high percentage of sand ( %) causes high soil temperature during the day time. This is a limiting factor for tree growth (Ang 1994). High sand content in the soil also PERTANIKA J. TROP. AGRIC. SCI. VOL. 21 NO. 1, 1998

4 SURVIVAL AND EARLY GROWTH OF A. MANGIUM, G PENTANDRA & C EQUISETIFOLIA ON SANDY TIN TAILINGS TABLE 4 Soil physical (a) between three timber species Soil physical Acacia mangium Ceiba pentandra Casuarina equisetifolia Sand (%) M. C. (%) 85.48b 5.16a 10.16a 0.57a 86.79a 4.35b 8.02b 0.43b 85.75b 4.10b 7.64b 0.41b (b) between the cover crop species Soil physical Centrosema pubescens Calopogonium muconoides Puereria phaseoloides Sand (%) M.C. (%) 86.02ab 4.75a 9.04a 0.39a 86.51a 4.50a 8.14b 0.49b 85.48b 4.36a 8.64ab 0.54b (c) between two levels of fertilizer Soil physical Sand (%) M.C. (%) with fertilizer 86.14b 4.29b 8.06b 0.55a without fertilizer 85.26b 4.78a 9.15a 0.39b Note: Means with the same letter are not significantly different (P<0.05) as determined by Duncan's new multiple range test M.C- moisture content increases the porosity and reduces the water retention capacity (Ang 1994) and will cause excessive drainage and leaching of nutrients. According to Shamsuddin et al. (1986), a high sand levelwill slow down the process of soil structure development. Soil Chemical Properties The results of the analysis of soil chemical are shown in Table 5. The ph value, exchangeable Ca, Mg and CEC showed significant (P<0.05) difference among the three tree species. A. mangium recorded the highest values, followed by C. equisetifolia and C. pentandra plots, probably due to the higher accumulation of organic matter through litterfall under A. mangium plots. There was no significant (P<0.05) difference between plots of the three tree species for total N, available P and exchangeable K. However, available P was highest in C. equisetifolia y followed by A. mangium and C. pentandra plots. Organic carbon was highest in the A. mangium plot, and this was significantly (P<0.05) different from the other two tree species plots. In the plots under cover crops, exchangeable Ca, organic carbon and CEC values showed significant (P<0.05) difference between the plots, C. pubescens plot giving the highest value for exchangeable Ca whereas the C. muconoides plot recorded the highest value for CEC. Similarly, only exchangeable Ca and CEC values were significantly (P<0.05) higher in fertilized plots than the unfertilized ones. The results show that total soil N after planting with tree crops, cover crops with and without fertilizer application was still low (0.04%) compared to the other agricultural 62 PERTANIKAJ. TROP. AGRIC. SCI. VOL. 21 NO. 1, 1998

5 NIK MUHAMAD MAJID, BIMAL K. PAUDYAL AND ZARINA BT SHEBLI (a) between three timber species TABLE 5 Soil chemical Soil chemical m Acacia mangium Org C 1.12a ph 4.87a N (%) 0.04b P (ppm) 9.59a K (meq/100 g soil) 0.11a Ca (meq/100 g soil) 1.12a Mg (meq/100 g soil) 0.57a CEC (meq/100 g soil) 1.95a (b ) between the cover crop species Ceiba pentandra 0.92b 4.73c 0.03b 8.60a 0.12a 0.84c 0.48b 1.87c Casuarina equisetifolia 0.88b 4.76b 0.03b 10.40a 0.11a 0.95b 0.52ab 1.88b Soil chemical Centrosema pubescens Calopogonium muconoides Puereria phaseoloides Org C 1.08a ph 4.80a N (%) P (ppm) 10.12a K (meq/100 g soil) 0.12a Ca(meq/100 g soil) 1.04a Mg (meq/100 g soil) 0.54a CEC (meq/100 g soil) 1.90b (c) between two levels of fertilizer 0.82b 4.80a 9.32a 0.11a 0.97b 0.52a 1.96a 0.88b 4.78b 9.15a 0.12a 0.88c 0.51a 1.84c soil chemical Org C PH N (%) P (ppm) K (meq/100 g soil) Ca (meq/100 g soil) Mg (meq/100 g soil) CEC (meq/100 g soil) with fertilizer 0.96a 4.95a 11.02a 0.13a 0.81a 0.53a 2.09a without fertilizer 0.92a 4.95a 10.82a 0.12a 0.74b 0.54a 2.06b Note: Means with the same letter are not significantly different (P<0.05) as determined by Duncan's new multiple range test soils under Malaysian conditions, which is about 0.12% (Law and Tan 1973). The results of the present study confirmed the findings of Mitchell (1957) because of the high leaching process in the soil and low organic matter content. This is also related to the high sand content and the high soil temperature (Black 1968). Similarly, CEC in the soil is very low (2.09 meq/loog soil) compared to the normal soils under Malaysian conditions (>100 meq/loog soil) (Law and Tan 1973), probably due to the low clay content (<10%) in tin tailing areas. In general, it can be concluded that soil chemical were little influenced, quantitatively, by the planting of tree or cover crops. Height Growth A. mangium showed the fastest height growth of the three tree species (Table 6). There was, however, no significant (P<0.05) difference in PERTANIKA J. TROP. AGRIC. SCI. VOL. 21 NO. 1,

6 SURVIVAL AND EARLY GROWTH OF A. MANGIUM, C PENTANDRA 8c C. EQUISETIFOUA ON SANDY TIN TAILINGS TABLE 6 Growth performance Growth Cover A. mangium C. pentandra C. equisetifolia parameters crops F WF V WF F WF Height C. pubescens 615c 620c 270bc 280b 170d 290b (cm) C. muconoides 580d 760b 290b 380a 280b 300a P. phaseoloides 780a 758b 270bc 220d 180d 240c Diam C. pubescens 78c 81bc 58b 68a 26c 28c (mm) C. muconoides 75c 85b 67a 72a 34b 38a P. phaseoloides 120a 83b 57b 55b 33b 34b Note: F- fertilized WF- without fertilizer Means with the same letter(s) are not significantly (P<0.05) different as determined by Duncan's new multiple range test height growth between C. pentandra and C. equisetifolia. A. mangium interplanted with P. phaseoloides (fertilized) recorded the highest height growth followed by A. mangium with C. muconoides (unfertilized) and A. mangium with P. phaseoloides (unfertilized). The other two tree species (C. pentandra and C. equisetifolia) recorded the maximum height growth in combination with C. muconoides (unfertilized). Interestingly, the results show that generally the trees in the unfertilized plots have better height growth than trees in the fertilized plots. This is possibly due to the nutrients taken by the cover crops in fertilized plots. In simultaneous agroforestry where the tree and crop components grow at the same time and sufficiently close to each other, there is competition for light, water or nutrients (Sanchez and Palm i996). Thus it might be possible that the competition for nutrients between trees and cover crops led to reduced height growth in fertilized plots. Diameter Growth A. mangium recorded the greatest diameter growth, followed by C. pentandra and C. equisetifolia (Table 6), and the growth was significantly (P<0.05) different between the three tree species. A. mangium interplanted with P. phaseoloides (unfertilized) showed the highest diameter growth followed by A. mangium with C. muconoides and C. pubescens (both unfertilized), respectively. C. pentandra and C. equisetifolia showed maximum diameter growth with C. muconoides (unfertilized). Similar to height growth, unfertilized plots generally had higher diameter growth than the fertilized ones, possibly for the reason explained earlier. The results clearly demonstrated better growth performance of A. mangium than the other two tree species on sandy tin tailings because A. mangium is a pioneer species that can grow very well in rocky, disturbed and even on sandy soils. Ramli (1995) reported that A. mangium recorded the highest growth on ex-tin mining land. Similarly, Zakari (1990) also reported the successful planting of A. mangium Willd. on sandy ex-tin mining land in Sernenyih. C. pentandra has also established well on this ex-tin mining land. Earlier, Paudyal and Nik Muhamad (1992) reported that C. pentandra can be used to rehabilitate the ex-tin mining land. Similarly, C. equisetifolia has shown promising results for such rehabilitation. Fertilizer application at the rate of 300 g NPK per seedling may not be sufficient as there was significantly poorer tree growth. Similarly, there was little quantitative effect on soil before and after planting tree species with cover crops. This is probably because of high leaching of nutrients and also changes in soil in poor soils, such as, tin tailings, take a longer time period to occur. CONCLUSION All the three tree species can grow well on sandy tailings. A. mangium showed the best growth performance followed by C. pentandra and C. equisetifolia. The planting of the cover crops and tree species improved, in smaller quantities, some soil chemical. This combination might be a viable option for reducing the input of chemical fertilizers as growth was enhanced even without the application of fertilizers. 64 PERTANIKA J. TROP. AGRIC. SCI. VOL. 21 NO. 1, 1998

7 NIK MUHAMAD MAJID, BIMAL K. PAUDYAL AND ZARINA BT SHEBLI RECOMMENDATIONS As there was no significant effect on height and diameter growth of the three tree species by the application of fertilizer, more research needs to be conducted to determine the cause of this effect. Another area for further research is to determine the optimum dose of fertilizers for boosting growth of trees. Other types of slow release fertilizers should be used for longer retention in the soil. Similarly, further studies on other indigenous species need to be conducted in the rehabilitation of ex-tin mining land as information in this area is lacking. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We would like to thank Muzammal, Mazlan and Mohd. Talib for their help during the field work and laboratory analysis. Funding from the International Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada is gratefully acknowledged. REFERENCES ANG, L.H Some potential tree species for reclamation of tin tailings. Paper presented at the National MPTS seminar, December Forest Research Institute Malaysia. 14p. ANG, L.H Problems and prospects of afforestation on sandy tin tailings in Peninsular Malaysia. Journal of Tropical Forest Science 7(1): ANON. 1991, Ministry of Primary Industries Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur: Adabi Publications. BLACK, L.A Soil Plant Relationship. New York: Wiley. BREMNER, J.M Organic nitrogen in soils. In Soil Nitrogen, ed. M.V, Bartholomew and F.E. Clark, p Agronomy monograph no. 10. American Society of Agronomy. CHAN, Y.K The mining land: An overview of the current situation in Peninsular Malaysia. Paper presented at the Seminar on Ex-mining Land and Bris Soils: Prospects and Profit, October 1990, Kuala Lumpur. 17p. LAW, W.W. and M.M. TAN, Chemical of some Peninsular Malaysia soil series. In Chemistry and Fertility of Tropical Soils, p , Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian Society of Soil Science, LKTKY, J Relationship between soil physical and crop production Adv. Soil Sci. J. (1): LIM, K.H., M. Luc, M. GILBERT and WAN SULEIMAN WAN HARUN. 1981, Reclamation of tin tailings for agriculture in Malaysia. Soil Science Department Tech. Bull. Serdang: Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Pertanian Malaysia. MITCHELL, B.A Malayan tin tailings: Prospects of rehabilitation, Malaysian Forester 20: NIK MUHAMAD MAJID, AZIZAH HASHIM and IDRIS ABDOL Rehabilitation of ex-tin mining land by agroforestry practice. Journal of Tropical Forest Science 7(1): PAUDYAL, B.K. and NIK MUHAMAD MAJID Preliminary growth response of Ceiba pentandra Gaertn. seedlings on ex-tin mining land in Peninsular Malaysia. In Proceedings of the International Symposium on Rehabilitation of Tropical Rainforest Ecosystem: Research and DetJelopment Priorities, ed. Nik Muhamad Majid, A.M. Ismail Adnan, H. Mohd. Zaki and J. Kamaruzaman, p Faculty of Forestry, UPM, Serdang, Selangor. RAMLI SETAPA Growth performance of three timber species on sandy tin tailings. B.Sc. Thesis, Universiti Pertanian Malaysia. SHAMSUDDIN, J., N. MOKHTAR and S. PARAMANTHAN Morphology, mineralogy and chemistry of ex-mining land in Ipoh, Perak. Pertanika 9: WALKLEY, A. and LA. BIACK An examination of the Deqtjareff method to determine soil organic matter and proposed modification of the chromic acid titration method. Soil Science 37: ZAKARI BIN SHAH BUDIN Growth performance of Acacia mangium Willd. to fertilization in tin tailings. B.Sc. Thesis, Universiti Pertanian Malaysia. (Received: 29 April 1997) (Accepted: 7 Disember 1998) * PERTANIKA J. TROP. AGRIC. SCI. VOL. 21 NO. 1,